Upcoming election
California General Election
Explore the statewide propositions and what a Yes or No vote would mean.
Summarized from the official California voter guide ↗. Updated September 22, 2026.
California propositions
- Prop 1
Bonds for affordable housing
Allows California to issue $11.25 billion in bonds for housing programs, including affordable rentals, veterans’ mortgages, and downpayment help. Estimated repayment costs are $500–600 million a year for roughly 25 years.
Official guide: analysis, arguments & text ↗What your vote means
- Yes
- Authorize the proposed borrowing for housing programs.
- No
- Reject this authorization for new housing bonds.
- Prop 2
State budget reserves
Changes the rules governing California’s rainy day savings and extra debt repayments. The changes would increase budget reserves and extend the period for additional debt payments.
Official guide: analysis, arguments & text ↗What your vote means
- Yes
- Adopt the new reserve and debt-payment rules.
- No
- Keep the existing reserve and debt-payment rules.
- Prop 3
Permanent extension of higher income-tax rates
Makes the existing additional income tax on high earners permanent, rather than ending it in 2031. The official estimate is $5–15 billion in annual revenue retained, with funding directed to public education.
Official guide: analysis, arguments & text ↗What your vote means
- Yes
- Continue the higher rates permanently.
- No
- Keep their scheduled expiration in 2031.
- Prop 4
Public financing of election campaigns
Removes the ban that prevents the state and most local governments from funding candidate campaigns. New programs would have restrictions, including a prohibition on using money earmarked for schools, transportation, or public safety.
Official guide: analysis, arguments & text ↗What your vote means
- Yes
- Allow governments to establish public campaign-financing programs under the measure’s limits.
- No
- Retain the existing restrictions on establishing those programs.
- Prop 5
How vacancies are filled after recalls
For statewide officers, removes the replacement-candidate question from recall ballots. Vacancies would generally be filled later through an appointment or a special election, depending on the office and timing.
Official guide: analysis, arguments & text ↗What your vote means
- Yes
- Separate the recall decision from the process of choosing a replacement.
- No
- Keep the replacement-candidate question on recall ballots.
- Prop 37
Loans for buyers of newly built homes
Creates a homebuyer assistance program backed by up to $25 billion in revenue bonds. Eligible California buyers could finance part of a qualifying new home’s price; borrowers’ loan payments would repay the bonds.
Official guide: analysis, arguments & text ↗What your vote means
- Yes
- Establish the proposed homebuyer loan program and authorize its bonds.
- No
- Do not require this new program to be established.
- Prop 38
Bonds for immunology research
Allows $8.4 billion in state borrowing for immunology and immunotherapy research. Half would go to one UC-affiliated nonprofit institute and half to research grants. Estimated annual repayment is $500–600 million for about 20 years, potentially offset by research revenue.
Official guide: analysis, arguments & text ↗What your vote means
- Yes
- Authorize the proposed medical-research bonds.
- No
- Reject this authorization for new research bonds.
- Prop 39
Identification requirements for voting
Requires government-issued identification for in-person voting and the last four digits of a designated government ID number on mail-ballot envelopes. Estimated implementation costs range from tens of millions to low hundreds of millions of dollars annually.
Official guide: analysis, arguments & text ↗What your vote means
- Yes
- Require the additional identifying information each time a voter casts a ballot.
- No
- Keep the existing signature-based method for establishing a voter’s identity.
- Prop 40
One-time tax on billionaire wealth
Imposes a one-time 5% wealth tax on certain taxpayers with more than $1 billion in assets, primarily funding health care. Revenue would be exempt from the state spending limit and constitutional school-funding requirements.
Official guide: analysis, arguments & text ↗What your vote means
- Yes
- Approve the proposed one-time wealth tax.
- No
- Do not impose this wealth tax.
- Prop 41
Special-tax audits and the state spending limit
Adds audits for programs financed by new special taxes, including reviews before tax initiatives reach the ballot. It also seeks to invalidate taxes enacted after January 1, 2026 that exempt their revenue from the state spending limit.
Official guide: analysis, arguments & text ↗What your vote means
- Yes
- Add the audit requirements and new restrictions on spending-limit exemptions.
- No
- Leave the existing audit duties and spending-limit rules in place.
- Prop 42
Limits on personal-property and retroactive taxes
Bars new state taxes on owning personal property, including financial assets, and certain taxes applied to past activities. Conflicting taxes enacted after January 1, 2026 would be invalidated.
Official guide: analysis, arguments & text ↗What your vote means
- Yes
- Adopt these limits on the state’s ability to impose new taxes.
- No
- Keep the state’s existing authority to establish these types of taxes.
- Prop 43
Two-thirds approval for voter-proposed local special taxes
Starting January 1, 2027, raises the approval threshold for local special-tax initiatives from a simple majority to two-thirds. The higher threshold could reduce future local tax revenue compared with current rules.
Official guide: analysis, arguments & text ↗What your vote means
- Yes
- Require two-thirds voter approval for these local taxes.
- No
- Continue allowing approval by a simple majority.
- Prop 44
Spending requirements for community health clinics
Requires certain nonprofit community health clinics to devote at least 90% of annual revenue to services advancing their charitable purpose. Clinics falling short would face penalties; fees would cover the state’s enforcement costs.
Official guide: analysis, arguments & text ↗What your vote means
- Yes
- Apply the new 90% program-services spending requirement to covered clinics.
- No
- Do not add this clinic-spending requirement.
- Prop 45
Environmental review and court deadlines
Changes environmental review for qualifying housing, transportation, water, health, and other projects. It tightens review and lawsuit deadlines and limits what courts can consider in challenges to project approvals.
Official guide: analysis, arguments & text ↗What your vote means
- Yes
- Allow qualifying projects to use the new review and court procedures.
- No
- Keep the existing review and court procedures.